Turning liquid gold into cash

May 2, 2011 4:09 PM

How do I turn a bottle of gold plating liquid into cash? The bottle, marked "AUROBOND" "Gold Content 1 OZ. TROY" was buried in some items I bought at an auction and I think it has gold in it.

I assume with the price of gold being what it is, the gold could be extracted with a centifuge type device and sold for a fair amount of cash.

My question is, where should I bring it? A "Cash for Gold" store that that are all over the place now? A jeweler, perhaps?

FWIW, the bottle appears to be old and is marked POISON.

posted by qsysopr to technology (7 answers total)

FWIW, the bottle appears to be old and is marked POISON

I'd handle it carefully. It might have cyanide in it.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 4:20 PM on May 2, 2011 [1 favorite]

I hope this isn't considered snark, but a "cash for gold" place is going to look at you like you have two heads if you were to bring them a bottle labeled "poison".

They are not chemists and are not equipped to separate whatever gold is in there from whatever poison is in there (cyanide, or whatever). Nor, likely, is a jeweler.
posted by dfriedman at 4:33 PM on May 2, 2011 [1 favorite]

A sign shop or a framing store MIGHT be interested. Craigslist might be a better spot to advertise it.
posted by lynnshaze at 4:36 PM on May 2, 2011

I believe what you have is a Gold Cyanide complex. If you scroll down on that Wikipedia entry, you will see a couple different methods to liberate the gold from the complex.
posted by rancidchickn at 4:44 PM on May 2, 2011

ebay it as rare special artists' material, rather than a toxic centrifuge golden goose.

(well, you might want to essay a small sample first).
posted by ovvl at 7:47 PM on May 2, 2011 [1 favorite]

An assay is a good idea, but why only a small sample? Is it destructive?

FWIW, the solution is really dense. The bottle weighs almost a half a pound.
posted by qsysopr at 5:56 AM on May 3, 2011

I've had good dealings with this company for selling scrap silver from casting projects.
posted by doctord at 7:03 AM on May 3, 2011